James Wilson (basketball)

James Wilson
Born
Far Rockaway, Queens, New York City, US
OccupationStreetballer

James "Pookie" Wilson was a streetballer from Far Rockaway, Queens[1] in New York City.[2]

College basketball

He played at John Jay College.[1] At John Jay he played under Coach Bob Fox.[3] He was a 5'9" guard who is said to be the best person in the conference.[4] While there he led them to the CUNY finals.[5]

Streetball

James Wilson is compared to NBA Hall of Famer, Oscar Robertson, who is mentioned amongst the best because of his stats.[6] He is also mentioned as a comparison with Robertson because both are under-appreciated.[6] He became famous playing at the Rucker Park Tournament.[1] In one of the pro league tournaments he averaged 35 points per game, while also having a 62 points in a game.[1] In 1986, he scored 63 points in an Entertainers Basketball Classic game, a record which stood for 21 years.[6] He played in the pro league team called Chic All Stars with Steve Burtt Sr and NBA player Kevin Williams.[7] Wilson also once scored 100 points in a game in the Police Athletic League.[1] According to the book, Vertical Leap, he is considered one of the asphalt legends, along with Joe Hammond and Herman Knowings. He was a Rucker Park legend.[8] In the book Rogue Financier: The Adventures of an Estranged Capitalist, he was an NBA-caliber guard.[9]

Personal life

His nephew Jamar Wilson is a professional basketball player.[2]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e "Elite 24: Rucker Park legends".
  2. ^ a b "Article - The Official Website of the National Basketball League - NBL.com.au". 9 February 2014. Archived from the original on 9 February 2014.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  3. ^ "STATEN ISLAND GAINS FINAL WITH BARUCH". The New York Times. 27 February 1982.
  4. ^ "Full text of "[Yearbook] / John Jay College of Criminal Justice."".
  5. ^ "Staten Island and John Jay in City Final". The New York Times. 27 February 1983.
  6. ^ a b c "Rucker Park Diaries: The Underappreciated Legend of Pookie Wilson".
  7. ^ Mallozzi, Vincent M. (17 June 2003). Asphalt Gods: An Oral History of the Rucker Tournament. Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group. ISBN 9780385506762 – via Google Books.
  8. ^ Rieser, Bill (27 July 2012). Vertical Leap SAMPLER: How Jesus found New York City Basketball Legend Bill Rieser. Moody Publishers. ISBN 9780802484826 – via Google Books.
  9. ^ Homm, Florian (15 November 2012). Rogue Financier: The Adventures of an Estranged Capitalist. FinanzBuch Verlag. ISBN 9783862484256 – via Google Books.